Over the years, wheeled luggage has developed from its early stages, with a single, non-retractable handle (such as that depicted in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,805,929 and 4,561,526) to the more recent developments, including the development of telescoping handles (such as depicted in U.S. Pat. No. 5,253,739). The majority of wheeled luggage available to the public today have a pair of spaced wheels mounted on the bottom, widthwise edge of the case. This allows for the luggage to be rolled with the lengthwise edge of the case extending up, thereby minimizing the amount of room necessary to accommodate the luggage (an important feature when transporting the luggage up an escalator or through the narrow aisle of an airplane).
One problem associated with the wheeled luggage currently available is that it can often be uncomfortable to use. The angle at which the luggage is pulled can cause a person with longer legs to bump the back of his heels with the luggage. Furthermore, the handle itself can be uncomfortable to grip, and the positioning of the handle can cause strain on the user's arm.
Several attempts have been made to provide a more ergonomic wheeled luggage. U.S. Pat. No. 6,301,746, to Myers et al., provides a handle assembly for wheeled luggage. The Myers et al. handle assembly has two handles: a primary handle and a secondary handle. The secondary handle folds up into two positions, either perpendicular to the telescoping tubes or at a 180° angle. When folded down, the primary and secondary handles can be pushed down into the luggage, however the storage of the handles requires a large cavity, which reduces the amount of space available for storing personal items in the luggage. Furthermore, although each of the handles can be used for towing the luggage (providing the user with some flexibility in use), each only provides two ways of gripping the handle: grasping around the handle, with the palm either facing toward the body or the palm facing away from the body. This configuration, although comfortable for some, may be uncomfortable for those who prefer a grip that allows the user's arm to be parallel with the handle.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0132080, to Dababneh, attempted to solve the deficiencies of Myers et al. However, Dababneh has disadvantages. The handle depicted by Dababneh only allows for one means of gripping: with the hand grasped around a handle which is perpendicular to the axis of the wheels. Again, although this may be comfortable to some, it would not be comfortable to those who prefer to tow the luggage with their hand grasped around a handle that is not perpendicular to the axis of the wheels. Furthermore, although the handle apparently folds flush into the luggage, in the embodiment shown in which the handle folds upwards from the adjustable tube, if the luggage were to fall down onto the handle, the handle likely would break. In the embodiment shown, in which the handle and adjustable tube are pulled up from the luggage, and subsequently the handle is rotated about a pivot and center pin, the two parts of the adjustable tube again would likely break if the luggage were to fall onto the handle grip.
The present invention solves the deficiencies in the art by providing an adjustable, ergonomically correct telescoping handle assembly. The handle assembly of the present invention is stored (at a 6 o'clock position) flush within the luggage. The handle is stored in such a way as to be compact, minimizing the amount of room necessary for storage of the handle, thereby maximizing the volume of the container remaining for storage of personal items. Furthermore, the handle rotates up from a telescoping tube with the use of a hinge. The hinge allows the handle to be used in multiple positions. In one embodiment, the hinge allows the handle to be used in two positions: nearly perpendicular to the telescoping tubes (at a 2 o'clock position) or parallel to the telescoping tubes (at a 12 o'clock position). If the handle is being used in the nearly perpendicular position, and the luggage were to fall with the impact being taken by the handle, the handle would automatically adjust to its default position: parallel to the telescoping tube (at the 12 o'clock position). The hinge also allows the handle to be stored at an approximately 6 o'clock position. The telescoping handle assembly of the present invention shifts the weight of the bag onto the bag, rather than the user's arm, reducing strain on the user's arm. Furthermore, it provides for a greater space between the user's heel and the bag, reducing the chance that the user will kick the bag while walking, and it maximizes the interior volume of the luggage available for storing personal items.